Overview of BFA

Second year entry permitted: if prior credits earned in a filmmaking related program

Final project: in area of selected option

Diploma: Bachelor of Fine Arts in Filmmaking

The Bachelor of Fine Arts in Filmmaking is a three-year comprehensive degree in the art and craft of filmmaking, with the emphasis on hands-on instruction coupled with practical exercises in all the essentials of film and television production including directing, production, editing, cinematography and screenwriting.

The first year is oriented towards learning the fundamentals of film and television production with the emphasis on documentary and other non-fiction forms in film and television production. Second year, the emphasis is on fiction and the mastering of the technical and artistic aspects of film and television production.

In the third and final year of study, while taking the required core courses comprising the basis of their degree, the student chooses from five possible options: directing, production, editing, cinematography and screenwriting and prepares a project related to their selected option. This, in addition to selective workshops offered in the BFA curriculum, forms the basis of the program. Consequently, the student is trained to become a well-rounded and polyvalent filmmaker with additional practice in the area of their chosen option.

Option in Editing

The option in Editing gives students, in addition to pursuing their required core courses, the opportunity to orient their final year project towards editing and post production. Editing option students will edit three approved film projects in their final year of studies. They also have priority in all editing workshops during their second and third years.

Although the student’s final year curriculum allows for the choosing of a project related to the student’s Editing option, the student must, at the same time, continue and complete the required core classes of the Bachelor’s program.

Particulars of BFA

In addition to the required core subjects, the Bachelor’s program includes a choice of approximately 40 intense, high-end specialized workshops given by industry professionals covering a wide range of topics including the latest developments in production and technological advancements in the film, television and new media industries.

Included in the program, is an exclusive membership at the world-renowned French Cinémathèque giving EICAR students free access to both the Cinémathèque library and mutltimedia library as well as admission to all daily screenings. The EICAR Graduation and Film Awards are held every year in the Cinémathèque’s prestigious Henri Langlois Theatre.

The small class sizes and one-on-one tutoring with personalized feedback on class exercises and film projects are the cornerstones of the EICAR program, allowing students to advance rapidly towards mastering the fundamentals of film and television production.

Validation of credits

After successfully completing all core classes, required workshops, and final year project, amounting to 180 ECTS the student is awarded a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Filmmaking degree issued by the European Board of Higher Education Schools (EABHES).

In each of these core courses, students are given weekly hands-on practical exercises to explore specific areas of filmmaking.

Second year

Perfecting fiction techniques in filmmaking

While continuing to develop their polyvalent skills in the disciplines outlined in the first year, students will have the opportunity to discover and develop the craft of fictional narrative in visual storytelling.

Directing: staging, shot listing and storyboarding, communicating with crew and actors, and interpretation of the script

Directing actors: fundamentals of casting and rehearsal techniques

Screenwriting: dramaturgy, character development, structure

Production: budgeting, scheduling, location scouting and permits, running a film set

Master Class Lecture Series

Master Class Lecture Series is a weekly program where guest speakers, internationally renowned film, television and media professionals, all celebrated in their specific fields, give a two–hour lecture on the subject of their expertise.

You will meet directors, producers, actors, editors, authors, musicians, costume designers, directors of photography, sound designers and more. Our guests come to share their work, their stories and their experience. Films and film clips will be shown to illustrate their work.